Chapter two: New Friends…?

I watched him…Kai Hiwatari…something seemed so oddly familiar about him…and it wasn't just from seeing him on T.V. or in the newspaper…something nagged at the back of my mind, begging me to remember…something about him was just eerily familiar. Suddenly my thoughts were interrupted by a loud, impatient voice.

"Hello? Hello! Are you in there? Can we place our orders now; we have hard training to do!" Tyson waved his hand in front of my face. "Hello! Quit staring at us like that, its really weird!"

I startled out of my mind and looked at him quickly with wide violet eyes. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I really am! I wasn't meaning to stare; I-….what is your order?" I cut off my apologies and stammering to ask the question as I got my notebook and pencil ready. My face flushed and I lowered my head while waiting for the answer…or the laughs.

Kai's POV

I had felt her eyes upon me as I sat with my usual pose, my arms crossed across my chest and my eyes closed while listening to my team bicker. I suddenly heard my team quiet down, so I opened my eyes to find out why and who was watching me.

My lifted gaze was met by wide-pupils, and a dark violet pair of eyes with long, thick lashes. I studied her face, it was pale, but fair, and had the look of longing eagerness and interest, but fearful containment. Her bangs fell over her forehead and her long, thick dark purple hair framed her face as parts of it fell from her high ponytail. I hardly moved my eyes but I caught each detail. Around her neck were three necklaces, a locket with blood red ribbon tied around it, a rose necklace of pale pink, and lastly was half of a medallion. This caught my attention, though I didn't let it show, but the simple piece of metal cut into a half moon shape had a marking that I knew I had seen before. It had a silver griffin carved into its black metal, and it hang from a silver chain. I raised my eyebrow slightly at the sight but then moved my gaze back to her face.

'Why is she still staring at me?' I thought with some annoyance at her almost trance like state. I gazed back at her with a calm, emotionless look in my deep violet eyes. I had no use for girls…especially ones that would openly stare at me.

I exhaled to myself and closed my deep violet eyes again when I heard Tyson chirp up. By her startled answer, she seemed broken out of her trance. I allowed myself to slip back into my thoughts but kept alert inspite of my meditation of thought.

End

Kiyoko

I opened my eyes slowly; I didn't understand the strange silence. My eyes quickly flittered to each of the 'blader's before me. 'Why aren't they laughing? Or mocking me? They're just sitting there…' I uncomfortably shifted my weight to the other foot. "Um…w-what would your orders be?" I tried the question again, while hoping to wake them.

They seemed to awaken suddenly and quickly gave me the flood of orders; I slowly nodded while scribbling each food item down. I smiled at them then turned and skated quickly to the kitchen. After a few moments I returned with two trays, one piled with several plates of steaming food, and the other with glasses of drinks. Carefully I skated over and put each tray down. They had all returned to their conversations or bickering, from this I exhaled with relief.

All went well with serving out the food, they just continued their conversations. Quietly I turned and headed back to the kitchen as unnoticed as I could. As I reached the door though, another one of the waitresses burst out. My eyes widened as the door hit me square in the face and body. With a small gasp she collided with me and we both tumbled heavily to the floor.

"Ow! Kiyoko you baka!" She snapped at me, her eyes flaring as she got up from the floor and turned away from me with a flare of her skirt and little ponytail. "This is the second time today dang it! And the fifth time this week! When are you going to finally learn to watch where you are going and quit screwing up?!" She growled as she stalked back into the kitchen, probably in search of Mr. Moshi.

I sat on the floor where I had landed; pain ran through my body and along my cheekbones and nose. I flinched and brushed the back of my hand across my nose and looked at it. Red liquid was stained on the skin of my hand. "Oh great…" I murmured softly as I felt the blood drip from my nose and the metallic taste stung in my mouth. I sniffed and got slowly to my feet, my rollerblade slipped out from under me and I landed on my knees again. I slumped slightly as pain ran through my now bruised knees. The stares of other people burned into the back of me as I kept my head bowed while I waited for the shakiness to wear off so I could get up again.

A hand touched my shoulder; I looked up slowly, hesitating to meet the gaze of the observer. My heart skipped slightly at the sight of large, kindly blue eyes. "Hey, are you alright?" Max. He smiled at me sympathetically. His hand lowered down in front of me, beckoning me.

Slowly I nodded and took his hand, and then he helped me to my feet. My gaze flicked down the floor then back up at him again. "…Thank you" I murmured softly, my face turned to a light shade of pink again. Gingerly I slipped my hand from his and carefully took a step back. "I…I should get back to the kitchen." I said quietly as my face turned pinker at his stare.

"Are you sure? Your nose is bleeding, c'mon, just sit down for a few minutes" He took my hand again and led me over to the table filled with his team again. Before I could protest, I found myself shoved down beside Tyson, and Max sat down beside me on the end.

'I don't want to be here…I really don't want to be here…' I thought while staring down at the table with my hands tightly clasped in my lap. I saw a few Kleenexes set on the table before me. I looked up and saw Max hand them to me; timidly I took them and held up the soft, white tissue to my bleeding nose. My gaze went back to being glued to the table.

Ray's POV

My keen golden eyes watched her movements from across the table. I had seen her fall and was going to get up, but Max had leaped at the opportunity. I studied the girl; she seemed to tremble under all of our gazes, as if she was scared to even be seen, even by a gentle eye. I watched her as she quietly, timidly picked up another tissue and rest it against her bleeding nose.

'Something about her appearance seems….different.' I thought to myself as I studied her, her eyes seemed more angled, and her pupils were almost slitted. Her ears were slightly pointed though they were those of a human. She also had small tips of fangs showing from her mouth, especially when she smiled. I thought back to my own team, my village, even to myself, we all had something known as "neko-jin". It was something heredity that my whole village had since our traditional reserved life away from the rest of the world. We all developed characteristics of that of a cat, such as whiskers, or fangs, claws, angled eyes, slitted pupils, pointed ears, other things that made us look a little different. I went over this in my mind now as I took in her peculiar details.

I exhaled slightly while thinking of my village and team, my thoughts wandered to a specific person, my beloved girlfriend...She had left on some business while I travelled and beybladed with my team the G-Revolutions. She was beautiful, her hair long and black, her eyes icy blue and her skin gently tanned. I sighed to myself inwardly now at the thought of her stunning smile, and the feeling of her warmth as I held her close to me in my arms. I brought myself back to the present after letting myself wander in my own world for awhile when I heard Tyson yelling at Daichi.

I watched them bicker as they raised their voices; I then glanced to the side at Kai. He had his eyes closed like normal, but I was more then certain he knew what was going on, maybe more then any of us could imagine in fact, he seemed to always know what was going on when he walked in on a situation, or he would always appear when it was most important then disappear again when he as no longer needed. I thought over these things, once again in my own world.

End

Kiyoko

I looked at Ray, I had seen him studying my features in an odd way, and I shifted my position again nervously in the cushioned seat. Tyson's voice broke into my thoughts "Hey, Kiyoko? Are you a beyblader by any chance?"

I looked at him, "A beyblader?" I asked quietly.

He nodded, "Yeah, a beyblader, like us, you know." He reached into his jacket and took out a beyblade; he set it on the table. "See? This is Dragoon." He said with a proud look.

I looked at the beyblade in front of me on the granite table in wonder. It was white with green and red markings; it was carefully cut out of metal with many points. I reached out cautiously and picked it up; I held it in my hand and studied it. The most interesting part was the bit beast tab in the middle, it was a little tab set into the blade with a picture of a blue dragon. A strange sense of familiarity sparked in my mind. I nodded slightly.

"You're a beyblader?" Max asked.

I looked up at him and put the beyblade in Tyson's hand. "I…I think so..." I murmured. "I have one of these…a beyblade…"

"You have a beyblade? Then what are you doing here in some restaurant?" Daichi piped up loudly as he stared at me.

"I…it's my job…I don't use the beyblade…or I don't battle, I only use it once in awhile…" I hastened to explain, I had a beyblade, I knew I had power…I always felt it burning in my chest whenever I watched a beyblade battle, a strange eagerness always filled me, but I always resisted it. Every once in awhile I would take out my beyblade and go to the park in the dead of night and play around, but that was really all…but it always felt like it has a strange connection to me…a part to play in my life. I just don't know what. A strange flare of mistrust ran through me as I watched their eager faces. "…I'm sorry…I must get back to work…" I murmured softly as I rose to my feet. My nose had ceased bleeding, and I felt oddly uncomfortable around them…perhaps it was because I was beginning to feel comfortable…I looked at them and smiled slightly then turned away and carefully skated to the doors again.

Tyson called, "Hey, I want to battle you, maybe later?" He grinned; his challenge was chorused with encouragements to meet up with them later.

I looked back at them, I slowly nodded but smiled faintly again anyways. My gaze stole to Kai, he had his eyes open and was watching me, I shivered slightly beneath his solemn gaze but felt a strange warm tinge at the same time. I turned and headed into the kitchen again. 'Friends…? Or foes?' I thought to myself.